Huddled under voluminous blankets, watching the white pile up outside my windows, I reach for the old purple paperback that first gave me the word snowbound. The book’s been sitting on a shelf next to the glider where I feed my four-month-old daughter six times a day. It’s there with the other children’s books whose […]
I’ve learned to avoid New Year’s resolutions; however, I may have to break that trend this new year, thanks to Squirrel’s Fun Day by author/illustrator duo Lisa Moser and Valeri Gorbachev. The big, wonderfully enchanting world fills squirrel with such enthusiastic delight he determines his only to-do for the day is to have fun. But when […]
Choosing books for Christmas is always a delightful experience. There are many from which to choose, so when selecting a book I ask myself how many things I might share with the children when we read this book. There needs to be more than the fun, excitement, and joys of the season. This helps me […]
The Rumor by Monique Felix (Chronicle, 2011) Publisher Summary Word travels quickly through a peaceful village when a hungry beast is spotted in the hills. Some say he has ears that can hear a potential meal from a mile away! Others declare that his stink is enough to kill you with just one whiff! Still […]
“…our children shouldn’t have to be afraid. I shouldn’t have to be afraid when they walk out the door.” 1 Last week, my 5 a.m. consciousness struggled to place these newscaster’s words. Somehow, Deborah Wiles’ Revolution, fresh in my mind, projected like a newsreel right into the morning’s story. This news was Ferguson, MO, not […]
Every elementary school teacher knows the secret to a successful school year is not dependent upon phenomenal lessons delivered, but rather on classroom culture and learning environment. When a classroom is full of students at peace in mind and heart, they are ready to listen, collaborate, take risks, feel confident, and achieve. Once the learning […]
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things. Philippians 4:8 NIV Using Philippians 4:8 as a guideline during reading, try having readers ask questions like these. This is just a start—be […]
When my middle daughter Liberty was 7 years old, she wanted to read more than anything. She spent hours looking at books and tried so hard to decode them, but she literally couldn’t see. Born a preemie, her vision was weak and reading real books was HARD, even with very strong glasses. The more time […]
Courage by Bernard Waber (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2002) Publisher Summary What is courage? Certainly it takes courage for a firefighter to rescue someone trapped in a burning building, but there are many other kinds of courage too. Everyday kinds that normal, ordinary people exhibit all the time, like “being the first to make up after […]
Lost in Bermooda by Mike Litwin (Albert Whitman & Co., 2014) Publisher Summary Bermooda has no “outsiders,” and most prefer to keep it that way. That is, until Chuck ventures into the boneyard alone and discovers a young human boy who has been washed up unconscious on the sandbar! The young boy’s name is Dakota […]
